Whitby school wins award for student success

DURHAM -- A Whitby Catholic high school has been recognized for the work it's done to improve student success.

On Nov. 15, All Saints Catholic Secondary School received the Dr. Bette M. Stephenson Recognition of Achievement, which honours school communities across Ontario that have made effective use of Education Quality and Accountability Office data and evidence from other sources to enhance and support student achievement.

A case study featuring All Saints has been posted to the EQAO website, highlighting the school's accomplishments and continuous improvement in the annual Ontario secondary school literary test results.

"The Dr. Bette M. Stephenson Recognition Program acknowledges school communities, like All Saints Catholic Secondary School, that have distinguished themselves through their leadership, data-driven strategies and whole-school approaches to help every child succeed," said Marguerite Jackson, EQAO chief executive officer.

She said each of the recognized schools has adopted an action plan based on their unique circumstances to work toward improved student outcomes.

Principal Gloria Krampp said data collected from EQAO literacy results, attendance, credit accumulation and suspension rates, along with individual classroom data and OSSLT student questionnaires, are used to identify trends and make informed decisions for development and improvement.

She said staff members have become more aware of how and why the data are used and that it is not just the English department's role to teach literacy -- it must be a collective responsibility.

"The OSSLT results provide meaningful information that lead teachers to become more confident about data and therefore more open to sharing with each other," she said. "And the EQAO data motivates teachers to teach literacy skills across the curriculum."